Flight Safety Information
December 9, 2013 - No. 251
In This Issue
Plane landing aborted by high winds at Birmingham Airport
Pilots Cited in July Jet Crash
Jet slides off taxiway at Lambert Airport
European Commission keeps all Nepal's airlines on EU air safety list
Goma Air to operate new turboprop aircraft (Nepal)
Passenger Falls Asleep On Plane, Wakes Up Alone, Locked Inside
Think ARGUS PROS
International Space Station set to turn 15
Need for speed drives efforts for supersonic business jet
Ethiopian Airlines: 2013 'African Airline of the Year'
Women Aviation Mechanics in high demand
Graduate Research Editor Available
Watch for: AVIATION MAINTENANCE & ENGINEERING EXCHANGE
Plane landing aborted by high winds at Birmingham Airport
Plane trying to land at
Birmingham Airport in the winds
The control tower warned pilots landing in Birmingham of crosswinds up to 100 mph. This did not stop
Emirates Airlines to attempt a landing at this airport possibly narrowly escaping a disaster. The video in this
articles shows how the airline put hundreds of passengers in great danger when landing at Birmingham airport
in the United Kingdom.
The question: What policies and regulations should be put in place at airlines and airports to avoid such
games of russian roulette in the future.
Amateur footage has emerged of an Emirates Boeing-777 from Dubai attempting a crosswind landing at
Birmingham International Airport on Thursday, before pulling away at the last moment.
Strangely Emirates is regarded as one of the best and safest airlines in the world.
"Never getting on a plane again. Full on wanted to cry," Miller posted on Instagram. other airports as 100
mph winds wreaked havoc on the country, forcing hundreds of flights to be delayed. Dramatic footage of a
Boeing-777 failed landing appeared online.
Several planes across Britain have been forced to abort landings and redirected toThe plane attempted to
more go-arounds, but had to be redirected to Gatwick airport, where passengers waited inside, before winds
died down sufficiently for the plane to make another, successful, landing in Birmingham
"As we came towards the city, the plane was shaking on the way down. We could see from the in-flight
monitors that the plane was drifting to the left as we were landing," passenger Kevon Miller told the
Birmingham Mail.
"When the plane started hovering back up from the landing, we thought the pilot was half-asleep and had lost
control!" said another passenger.
http://www.eturbonews.com/
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Pilots Cited in July Jet Crash
Confusion Surrounding Automation Linked to Landing Disaster in San Francisco
By ANDY PASZTOR CONNECT
Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashed during landing at San Francisco International Airport in July,
resulting in three deaths and injuring more than 180.
estigators will release new information this week highlighting that excessive reliance on cockpit computers,
combined with pilot confusion about automated thrust settings, led to the crash of an Asiana Airline Co. jet
trying to land at San Francisco in July, people familiar with the probe said.
The crash resulted in three deaths and more than 180 injuries after the tail of the widebody jetliner, arriving
after an overnight flight from Seoul, slammed into a sea wall. The aircraft broke apart and eventually was
engulfed by fire.
The National Transportation Safety Board public hearing that kicks off Tuesday, while stopping short of
formally identifying the cause, also will focus on broad safety concerns about potential downsides of
automation and the need to adjust pilot training in light of increasingly computerized cockpits.
The NTSB is expected to answer the biggest puzzle surrounding the crash of Asiana Flight 214, according to
people briefed on the details, by revealing that the veteran pilots misunderstood precisely how the Boeing Co.
777's automated speed-control features were designed to function. Partly as a result of that confusion and the
flight crew's undue trust in the system, investigators have found the pilots failed to properly monitor the
jetliner's speed and trajectory.
Previously, the NTSB didn't disclose whether the pilots failed to turn on the plane's auto-throttles-intended to
maintain designated airspeed-or somehow disconnected them during the late phase of the approach to San
Francisco International Airport. On Tuesday, the board is slated to spell out a sequence of events showing the
pilots weren't aware that the auto-throttle system was inadvertently shifted into an inactive mode shortly
before the crash, according to people familiar with the board's findings.
NTSB investigators and others view the high-profile crash as a prime example of a trend some have dubbed
"automation addiction," which safety experts believe poses the greatest hazards to airline passengers world-
wide.
Advances in cockpit automation over the decades have contributed greatly to making flying safer than ever in
the U.S. and globally. But various studies have shown that both manual flying skills and situational awareness
in the cockpit tend to erode as airline pilots depend more extensively on computerized flight-control systems.
When those built-in safeguards suddenly malfunction or switch off, according to experts, startled or confused
crews may react improperly.
Descending over water toward the San Francisco runway in good weather on July 6, the Asiana pilots engaged
the Boeing 777's auto-throttles to maintain safe speed during the visual approach. But after the twin-engine
jet passed through roughly 3,000 feet, according to people briefed on the details, the pilots didn't realize
computerized speed controls had become inactive after they changed a setting to computers and eased back
the throttles, not recognizing that meant auto-thrust wouldn't work. They failed to notice or react to a specific
cockpit alert about the status of the auto-throttles, according to these people and others familiar with data
investigators collected.
With airspeed dropping quickly and dangerously below a predetermined level while the descent rate increased
to about 1,200 feet per minute-or more than twice the normal rate-the crew failed to react until it was too
late. Throttles weren't manually advanced to increase engine thrust and try to climb away from the strip until
about two seconds before impact, based on earlier safety board statements.
Asiana, the NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration all declined to comment in advance of the hearing.
Boeing, which provides simulator training for all of the airline's 777 pilots, also declined to comment. In the
past, Asiana has said the pilots were properly trained, met all regulatory requirements and had the necessary
experience for their tasks.
The dynamics inside the cockpit were complicated because the pilot flying the approach, who had recently
been upgraded to a 777 captain, was still under the supervision of a training captain sitting in what is usually
the co-pilot's seat. The pilot trainee was making his first approach to San Francisco at the controls of a 777
and the training pilot was in the midst of his first trip overseeing a newly-minted 777 captain. A more-junior
co-pilot, sitting in the cockpit to help monitor the approach, apparently gave the initial verbal warning of a
problem.
The board is expected to delve into communication and authority issues that might have hampered teamwork
between the trainee pilot and the training captain, based on earlier safety board statements. The runway's
instrument landing system was out for maintenance at the time, according to the NTSB.
On Wednesday, the hearing will feature testimony from leaders of an industry-government panel that issued a
study last month spelling out the potential hazards of pilots who become so dependent on automation that
"they may be reluctant to intervene" in an emergency; or lack adequate training or "sufficient in-depth
knowledge and skills" to properly control an airliner's trajectory under certain circumstances.
After the study was released, David McKenney, an airline pilot, union official and one of the panel's co-chairs,
said the report's conclusions and recommendations were partly aimed at preventing tragedies such as the
Asiana crash. "We have basically trained pilots how to interface with the automated systems," he said, "but
now we have to go back to make sure they remain mentally engaged and understand that computers are
merely tools" pilots can use to control an aircraft's flight path.
The report lays out the dangers of so-called "mode confusion," when pilots lose track of exactly which tasks
cockpit computers are supposed to perform. New training approaches are necessary, according to Mr.
McKenney, to instill the skills and confidence pilots need "to be prepared to take over and do things manually"
in an emergency.
Earlier this year, according to U.S. government and industry officials, Asiana presented the NTSB with
arguments that some type of anomaly or malfunction prompted the auto-throttles to stop working. The airline
also cited a number of such suspected events on the global 777 fleet. But after interviewing the pilots of Flight
214 and reviewing maintenance and other records, U.S. investigators haven't found any malfunctions that
affected the engines, auto-throttles or other onboard systems prior to impact.
The July crash prompted major reassessments inside Asiana as well as its national regulator. The carrier
beefed up training efforts, including enhanced simulator sessions and greater emphasis on manual flying and
instrument-monitoring skills, according to industry officials. Asiana's recurrent pilot-training programs and
supervision of new captains already exceeded FAA and South Korean minimums prior to the crash, these
officials said, but now they incorporate elements aimed at providing a more in-depth understanding of
computer systems.
Last week, Asiana announced the hiring of a new senior executive vice president to head up safety efforts.
Akiyoshi Yamamura, a former safety specialist at Japan's All Nippon Airways, told reporters he plans to take a
more proactive approach to training and identifying budding safety problems.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304744304579246570888527440
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Jet slides off taxiway at Lambert Airport
ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI) - There was trouble on the taxiway at Lambert Airport after a jet slid off the runway
approaching the terminal.
Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident. It happened Sunday night. Right now, it's unclear if the
freezing conditions played a role in what happened.
A passenger on board the jet sent pictures to FOX 2. A United Airlines spokesperson says it happened just
before 6:45 a.m. on board a GoJet Airlines flight 3702. The jet was operating as a United Express flight.
The spokesperson says the jet had already landed safely and was taxiing to the gate when the nose gear
somehow ran off the taxiway and became stuck in the mud.
There were 60 passengers and four crew members on board the flight. Buses were used to take those people
to the terminal. Officials say the jet has been removed from the mud and GoJet officials are examining it.
The flight was coming into St. Louis from O'Hare Airport in Chicago. The plane was an hour and a half late
arriving in St. Louis.
http://fox2now.com/2013/12/09/jet-slides-off-taxiway-at-lambert-airport/
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European Commission keeps all Nepal's airlines on EU air safety list
KATHMANDU, Nepal - Airlines Operators Association of Nepal, releasing a press statement, has expressed its
serious concern over the European Commission (EC)'s decision to keep all Nepali airline companies on
European Union's air safety list.
The decision came after an EC meeting on December 5, based on safety information from various sources.
"The European Union had already observed the safety situation of the country in 2009, and had stated in its
report that the safety status of the country was satisfactory but the recent decision to ban Nepali airlines has
disappointed the aviation industry," states the association.
According to the Airlines Operators Association of Nepal, the EU should have once again observed the present
scenario of the Nepali aviation industry before listing Nepali airline companies in its safety list.
However, the European Commission in its recent statement has mentioned that due to the current safety
situation in Nepal, the commission had to put all Nepali carriers on the EU air safety list. It also says that the
ban will help the aviation authorities improve aviation safety.
According to the commission, it has already asked the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to prepare an
aviation safety assistance project for Nepal.
There are eight private fixed-wing operators for domestic flights, namely, Buddha Air, Yeti Airlines, Tara Air,
Simrik Air, Sita Airlines, Air Kasthamandap, Goma Air and Makalu Air, and 26 international operators in Nepal.
The European Commission has banned Nepal-based airline companies from flying into or within the EU.
http://www.eturbonews.com/40495/european-commission-keeps-all-nepals-airlines-eu-air-safety-list
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Goma Air to operate new turboprop aircraft (Nepal)
KATHMANDU, Dec 8: Goma Air is operating a new Let L410 UVP-E20 turboprop aircraft from February.
Issuing a statement, the airline said the 19-seater aircraft made in Czech Republic is a commuter type multi-
engine turbo propeller aircraft. "This is the first time in four decades that a brand new aircraft is being brought
in by a Nepali company to be operated in Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) airfields," the statement added.
Manoj Karki, managing director of Goma Air, said that the company will operate two aircraft manufactured by
LET Aircraft Industries. The first aircraft will fly from Kathmandu to different destinations in eastern Nepal
from mid-February, according to Karki. "The second aircraft, which will joint the fleet after six months, will fly
to destinations in western region from its base in Pokhara," said Karki.
According to Karki, the aircraft is fitted with all state of the art equipment and navigational aids which will
ensure safe air travel.
Rabi Chandra Singh, director of VR Holdings -- the authorized representative for LET Aircraft Industries in
Nepal, said that company is happy to bring aircraft that is suitable for Nepali sky. "We will make sure that
necessary steps are taken to start Maintenance and Repair Organization (MRO) in Nepal to provide service in
the South Asian region and to supply spare parts," he added.
This aircraft has received type certification by European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
At present, more than 350 L410 UVP-E20 aircraft are flying in more than 50 countries around the world.
"This is our first aircraft in Nepali airspace. We are excited to be here and assure that the aircraft meet all the
standards of International Safety Agency and Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)," Miroslav Kozisek,
commercial director LET Aircraft Industries, said. "The successful test landing at Jomsom Airport has
confirmed that our aircraft is the best STOL aircraft available in the world at present."
Milan Slapak, commercial director of GE Aviation, which makes engines for the L410 UVP-E20, said the H80
engine in the aircraft is safe and reliable. "It is designed to work in Nepali conditions very well," he said in the
statement.
Goma Air is currently operating cargo flights in mid and far western region with two Cessna caravan aircrafts.
http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=65843
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Passenger Falls Asleep On Plane, Wakes Up Alone, Locked Inside
A man who fell asleep flying from Louisiana woke up at his layover in Houston, inside a dark, empty and
locked plane.
Tom Wagner says that the United Express crew left him in the plane, even after he alerted authorities through
his girlfriend, for more than 30 minutes, according to ABC News.
The fiasco started on Friday when he fell asleep in a window seat near the back of the airplane. When
everyone deplaned at the layover, nobody woke Wagner up. He woke up in a pitch-black and cold cabin, and
the aircraft doors were locked.
Luckily, his cell phone wasn't dead.
"I called my girlfriend, and she thought I was crazy. I said, 'Debbie I'm locked on the plane,'" he told ABC. "I
said, 'I'm telling you the truth. You better go somewhere and get me off this plane."
Half an hour later, workers boarded the aircraft and rescued Wagner. He told KVEO that they wanted him to
keep the incident quiet, and put him up in a nearby hotel and gave him a $250 flight voucher to make the
ordeal go away.
United Express maintained that its crew did a post-flight walkthrough and issued this statement to the
Examiner:
Express Jet is investigating to determine how this occurred, we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this
caused the passenger.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/08/tom-wagner-falls-asleep-plane_n_4408546.html
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International Space Station set to turn 15
The U.S. Unity node and the Russian Zarya module opened for the first time Dec. 10, 1998.
MELBOURNE, Fla. - Everyone wanted to know: Who would be the first person to enter the new International
Space Station?
Bob Cabana, commander of the shuttle mission responsible for linking the station's first pieces together,
wouldn't tell the press or even his own crew.
The answer came on Dec. 10, 1998 - 15 years ago Tuesday - when hatches to the U.S. Unity node and
Russian-built Zarya module swung open for the first time in space.
Side by side, Cabana and cosmonaut crewmate Sergei Krikalev floated through.
"It was an International Space Station, and I felt it very important that we enter as an international crew,"
Cabana, a four-time shuttle flyer who has led Kennedy Space Center since 2008, told Florida Today in a recent
interview.
NASA and its 15 international partners are celebrating the station's birth 15 years ago this month, and its
growth into a research complex weighing more than a million pounds and stretching longer than an American
football field.
Crews have lived there continuously for more than 13 years, with six-person expeditions now the norm.
"It was an International Space Station, and I felt it very important that we enter as an
international crew." - Bob Cabana, head of Kennedy Space Center
Orbiting 260 miles above Earth, the station is now the centerpiece of the U.S. human spaceflight program,
though it is just starting to tap its potential as a national laboratory and faces questions about its long-term
future.
It all started on Nov. 20, 1998, when Cabana's five crewmates gathered at his Houston home for dinner and
NASA TV coverage of the launch of the Functional Cargo Block, known as Zarya ("star"), atop a Proton rocket
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.
"It was bated breath, for sure," Cabana remembered. "We knew that once Zarya got safely on orbit, we had a
mission two weeks later. So we were all elated when everything went well."
Endeavour blasted off Dec. 4 with the Node 1, or Unity, in its payload bay.
The shuttle crew attached Unity to the orbiter's docking port with a robotic arm, then got ready to grab Zarya.
Cabana remembers seeing the 41-foot long, 50,000-pound Russian module get bigger and bigger as
Endeavour approached.
Once everything was lined up properly, the modules were connected slowly but smoothly on Dec. 6, and the
International Space Station was born.
"Those two modules came together, and have been joined ever since, Russians and Americans in space,"
Cabana said.
Two spacewalks to connect cables and install antennas set the stage for the shuttle crew of five Americans
and Krikalev to enter for the first time.
"It was everything that we hoped for, to be inside the space station, to get to work inside there, to prepare it
for the first crew," Cabana said. "That was a special day."
On Dec. 10, 1998, astronaut Robert Cabana, left, and cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev, right, were the
first to float through the International Space Station.
Assembly continued through the final shuttle missions in 2011, adding girders, solar arrays and modules from
the U.S., Russia, Europe and Japan, and robotic systems from Canada, at an estimated cost of $100 billion.
The job required scores of spacewalks and hit few major snags for such a complex project.
Cabana now sees the station as a critical proving ground for technologies and research about living in
microgravity that will be needed for longer missions to a destination such as Mars. He believes the
international collaboration will serve as a model for exploration missions farther out into space.
The station is scheduled to operate through 2020, but NASA hopes it can be extended as long as 2028, which
studies have shown is technically feasible.
But there are already doubts about whether a tightening budget will force NASA to choose between continued
space station operations into the next decade or development of systems for human exploration beyond
Earth.
"I don't think that we need to choose," Cabana said. "I think they work together."
As long as it is flying, Cabana can see the station in the sky and remembers - like it was yesterday - putting
the first pieces together and what it was like being among the first to set foot inside the space station.
"It's really neat to know that I had a role to play in that," he said. "It's very special to see that bright star in
the sky in the early evening or late morning as it goes overhead."
http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/12/08/international-space-station-anniversary/3913157/
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Need for speed drives efforts for supersonic business jet
Rendering of Aerion's supersonic business jet
A model of the Aerion supersonic jet on display at Aerion's exhibit at a past National Business
Aviation Association convention.
The need for speed remains the catalyst behind a continuing effort by the Aerion Corp. to develop a business
jet that can fly faster than the speed of sound.
"We don't think there's any doubt this is clearly the next frontier," said Brian Barents, Aerion vice chairman
and a former executive at Bombardier Learjet and Cessna Aircraft in Wichita.
The industry is building business jets that fly farther, but it's stuck at subsonic flight, Barents said.
"There's clearly a demand for speed, and we feel that we're in a good position to take advantage of that
demand," he said.
Supersonic business jet flight will happen in our lifetime, Barents said.
Reno, Nev.-based Aerion wants to be first to the market.
Gulfstream also has a small supersonic jet research program. It does not yet have an aircraft. Its program is
dedicated to mitigating the sonic boom created by supersonic flight.
Aerion was founded in 2002 by Texas billionaire Robert Bass to develop and commercialize supersonic
transportation.
The last supersonic flight took place 10 years ago when the Concorde, a commercial airplane built by Britain's
British Aircraft Corporation and France's Aérospatiale, took place on Oct. 24, 2003. Falling passenger demand
and rising maintenance costs prompted British Airways and Air France to discontinue flying the Concorde, they
said at the time.
But manufacturers have continued to pursue the technology.
Aerion is deep in research.
It has been working with NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center to conduct testing.
In the first five months of 2013, they conducted a round of 11 flights with a 40-inch by 80-inch Aerion test
article mounted underneath an F-15 research plane and flown up to two times the speed of sound.
The test article was engineered to represent the Aerion wing flow and pressure conditions in supersonic
conditions, the company said.
If all goes well, Aerion plans for a supersonic business jet to enter the market in 2021.
Aerion also is rethinking which engines it will use for the project - a move that could improve performance or
increase cabin size.
It had planned to use Pratt & Whitney engines that could produce speeds of up to 1.6 Mach, or more than
1,200 mph. Mach 1, or 760 mph, is the threshold at which an airplane begins flying faster than the sound
waves it generates.
The current aircraft design was designed around the maximum capability of that engine, said Doug Nichols,
Aerion's CEO.
Now, Aerion is in discussions with at least three engine manufacturers to consider other engines that might
produce more thrust.
That may allow the company to resize the airplane with a larger cabin size or give it better performance, such
as an increase in range, Barents said.
To that end, Aerion has launched a new market survey to help determine market requirements for range,
cabin size and price "because none of that comes free," he said.
"It gives us the opportunity to explore a larger airplane if the market dictates," Barents said.
But a revised version will likely look a lot like today's design, Nichols said.
"It may be a little longer or wider; it could have three engines," he said. "That clearly has not been decided.
That will be the result of how the market speaks to us."
The market
Aerion says the market is there.
The business jet industry has not recovered from the recession that began in 2008. But demand is strong for
larger business jets costing more than $60 million, Barents said.
The size of the potential market may be difficult to gauge through surveys.
"Once a supersonic airplane is available; once it's in the market and fully announced and delivery positions are
firming up, I personally believe all sorts of wonderful things will happen on the demand side," Nichols said.
Supersonic flight will be able to shave off flight hours as it catapults passengers from the U.S. across the
ocean. And time is money.
Aerion has letters of intent for the purchase of roughly 50 supersonic jets at $80 million each, Barents said.
The orders have remained largely intact through the recession, he said.
Once changes to the airplane are made, the company will discuss them with customers. Those changes may
change the price of the plane as well.
Meanwhile, Aerion has been looking for a mainstream aircraft manufacturer to partner with to help bring the
concept to market. That effort is on hold until the results of the survey are known.
The boom is the thing
The Federal Aviation Administration has banned supersonic flights in American airspace because of the sonic
boom and shock waves that can rattle windows miles away.
Rules established by the International Civil Aviation Organization, which most of the rest of the world follow,
require that supersonic flight over land not create an audible disturbance on the ground.
Business jet manufacturer Gulfstream has been working with NASA on mitigating the sonic boom.
Gulfstream has been working on innovations such as a supersonic "quiet spike," a telescoping spike extending
from the nose of a jet to generate weak shocks, the company said.
Until the ban on supersonic flights over the U.S. is lifted, Gulfstream does not see a business case for a
supersonic business jet, said Gulfstream spokeswoman Heidi Fedak.
That's key to success, the company said.
Gulfstream is also working with regulatory authorities and research groups to see what sound level
communities and airports would support.
The goal is to change the regulations, Fedak said.
Aerion officials said it can operate under existing regulations.
The FAA has said it would consider adopting ICAO rules at some point.
But until that happens, Aerion's jet would fly at high speeds below the speed of sound over the U.S.
Over countries that follow ICAO's rules, Aerion's wing design will allow the supersonic jet fly at 1.1 to 1.2
times the speed of sound where a boom would be created but would dissipate at about 5,000 feet above the
ground and not be heard on the ground, they said.
Then it can fly as much as 1.6 times the speed of sound over open water where a perceptible boom is of no
consequence, officials said.
http://www.kansas.com/2013/12/08/3166857/need-for-speed-behind-supersonic.html#storylink=cpy
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Ethiopian Airlines: 2013 'African Airline of the Year'
Ethiopian Airlines CEO Tewolde Gebremariam receiving the 'African Airline of the Year' award from
IATA CEO Tony Tyler.
Addis Ababa - Ethiopian Airlines, the fastest growing and the most profitable African airline, won the 2013
"African Airline of the Year Award" from the African Airlines Association at its 45th Annual General Assembly
meeting held between 25 and 26 November 2013, in Mombasa, Kenya.
Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO, Mr. Tewolde Gebremariam, received the award from Mr. Tony Tyler, Director-
General and Chief Executive Officer of IATA in the presence of over 370 airline executives from 55 African
countries, aircraft manufacturers, service providers and other aviation stakeholders. Ethiopian was recognized
by the African Airlines Association for its global standard service, fast expanding network and continuous
profitability.
"As a truly indigenous African airline owned, managed and operated by Africans, it is a special honor for us to
receive this prestigious award from our association and fellow African sisterly airlines. The award is a tribute
to our 7,000+ employees, who are the main reason behind our success and who are working very hard every
day to make Ethiopian shine high in the sky.
It is also a recognition of the successful implementation of our 15 year strategic roadmap, Vision 2025, now in
its fourth year. We are meeting and even exceeding the ambitious network and fleet expansion, and revenue
and passenger growth targets of our Vision 2025.
As of 1 October 2013, we have transformed the airline into an aviation group, which will have, in addition to
our passenger and cargo businesses, profit centers such Ethiopian MRO, Ethiopian Academy, Ethiopian Ground
Services and Ethiopian In-Flight Catering. Going forward these aviation services will give us diversified
revenue streams, enable us to continue on our fast, profitable and sustainable growth trajectory, and attain
our objective of generating 10 billion dollars in annual revenue by 2025.
Today, Ethiopian has the youngest and most modern fleet in Africa and an extensive global network covering
practically all sub-Saharan Africa and five continents. With our multiple hub strategy, thru our partner African
airlines, ASKY in West Africa and soon Malawi Airlines in Southern Africa, we are more than ever bringing
Africa together and closer to the world. This is facilitating the flow of investment, tourism and trade in Africa
and contributing to the rise of our great continent", said Tewolde Gebremariam, Ethiopian Airlines Group,
CEO.
Ethiopian has also won in 2013 the SKYTRAX award for "Best Airline Staff Service in Africa" and the
Passengers Choice Award for "Best Airline in Africa".
About Ethiopian
Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian) is the fastest growing Airline in Africa. In its operations in the past close to
seven decades, Ethiopian has become one of the continent's leading carriers, unrivalled in efficiency and
operational success.
Ethiopian commands the lion share of the pan-African passenger and cargo network operating the youngest
and most modern fleet to more than 76 international destinations across five continents. Ethiopian fleet
includes ultra-modern and environmentally friendly aircraft such as the Boeing 787, Boeing 777-200LR,
Boeing 777-200LR Freighter and Bombardier Q-400 with double cabin. In fact, Ethiopian is the first airline in
Africa to own and operate these aircraft Ethiopian is currently implementing a 15-year strategic plan called
Vision 2025 that will see it become the leading aviation group in Africa with seven business centers: Ethiopian
Domestic and Regional Airline; Ethiopian International Passenger Airline; Ethiopian Cargo; Ethiopian MRO;
Ethiopian Aviation Academy; Ethiopian In-flight Catering Services; and Ethiopian Ground Service. Ethiopian is
a multi-award winning airline registering an average growth of 25% in the past seven years.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201312090001.html
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Women Aviation Mechanics in high demand
SAN ANTONIO -- It's been an industry dominated by males for decades, but move over men Aviation
Mechanics is for women too. "I have a lot of joy working on aircraft, working with my hands," said student
Laura Zinsitz. Since she was a little girl, the 23-year-old dreams of flying a plane. "Mainly because of the
influence of my brother," added Zinsitz. Zinsitz has her pilot's license and a bachelor's degree in statistics, but
there's one mission she hasn't been able to do. Zinsitz has always wanted to fly a plane to a third world
country for relief work. "One of the things they require is that their pilots have a maintenance background
having the pilots certificate as well as the maintenance certificate," she added. Zinsitz is getting her aviation
mechanics training at St. Phillip's College.
From the classroom, an airplane hangar, it's all hands on. The students can also take tests to become certified
by the Federal Aviation Administration. Zinsitz is just one of four women in her class, and already those
female students are in high demand. "We have employers who call us and ask us, 'how many women will you
be graduating and we can employ them?'" said Dr. Jen Osborne, with St. Phillip's College. Dr. Osborne says
the need for aircraft mechanics is so high, that's what really driving the change into recruiting women into the
jobs. "Our country is built on the kinds of technologies that we can't out source, if a plane is broken we can't
call somebody in a call center in India to come fix it," added Dr. Osborne. Women might also have another
advantage, size. "I guess for me they say that women have smaller hands, and sometimes being smaller is a
benefit as a mechanic," added Zinsitz.
http://www.news4sanantonio.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/women-aviation-mechanics-high-
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Graduate Research Editor Available
Omni Online
Academic and Professional Editing and Writing
William (Bill) DeLeeuw (de-LU), Director
Ph.D. in Linguistics, Language, and English from Auburn University
Certified in English as a Second Language
30 Years Experience
Editing, writing, and proofreading from a first draft
Assistance in editing and corrections in APA style (6th ed.), matching suggestions from reader comments, complying
with university manuals and guidelines,
correcting basic grammar and larger writing problems,
in-text citation and references,
instructions for more development, research, statistical clarity
Editor for Northcentral University, University of Phoenix, Argosy University, Walden University, Nova
Southeastern University
In the last 12 months, 8 students have completed their Ph.D. with the assistance of Omni Editing and Writing
Free estimate and turnaround time
Send draft, comments, style manual, by email (word .doc)
bdeleeuw@comcast.net
904 737-2193
$30 hourly rate. Payment due by U.S. check or U. S. money order.
Ask about our pre-paid plan
and save around 30% with a first and two additional draft editings
William DeLeeuw
4840 Deermoss Way S.
Jacksonville, FL 32217
"If we do not all hang together,
We will all most assuredly hang separately."
Benjamin Franklin
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